Sledding hills saw more traffic than roads on Wednesday, as North Jersey — rocked by the worst snowstorm in recent memory — seemed to come to a snowy standstill.

Twelve to eighteen inches of snow was expected in North Jersey by the end of the storm, which had not yet arrived late Wednesday. The New Jersey Weather Observers measured 12.2 inches in Ramsey and 11.7 inches in Paramus as of 8:45 p.m.

Road crews worked furiously throughout the day salting and plowing roads, often struggling to keep up with the relentless snowfall, which was measured in inches-per-hour. Many public works supervisors said efforts would continue long after the snow stopped.

For most people not driving a plow, Wednesday was a snow day best used for hunkering down at home. Nearly every school district from the Hudson to the Delaware closed, and many had already announced by late Wednesday that they would remain shut Thursday.

A large number of corporations, including Becton Dickinson in Franklin Lakes, Sharp in Mahwah, and Newark-based Prudential shut down for the day, allowing employees to work from home and avoid a treacherous commute.

By mid-morning, typically bustling downtowns were reduced to shuttered shops and snow drifts.

"It’s a ghost town today for sure," said Tom Burke, who was shoveling a sidewalk outside the Best Little Hairhouse in Westwood, which is owned by his sister. "No cars, no people working. Even the deli is closed. All the businesses are shut down."

The Schiller family of Wyckoff went in search of breakfast, but couldn’t find an open bagel place and went to the grocery store.

"Last night we got the call," said Peter Schiller who was working his consultant job from home rather than drive to Livingston. "The superintendent said for them to do two chores and read for pleasure."

Though police said that most people heeded the warning to stay off the roads, State Police reported 432 accidents by 5 p.m., while local departments reported sporadic accidents and road closings. About 4,700 people were without power by 6 p.m., about 400 of those in North Jersey, according to PSE&G.

"It’s going to take a good 12 to 15 hours to clean all the streets curb to cub, which could go into Thursday," said Tim Collins, superintendent of roads in Wayne.

In River Edge, DPW Superintendent John Lynch said that equipment failures had made the clearing effort more difficult for his crews, who had been working since 1 a.m.

"We’re trying to keep up and equipment breakdowns are really killing us," Lynch said. "We had one truck blow a transmission and a small fire on another truck. … Another truck hit a basketball hoop and ripped the side door off."

State offices and most county and local government buildings were closed, but officials were thinking about the overtime costs that would follow the storm.

Sheri Hensley, a spokeswoman for Bergen County, said the county estimates the blizzard could cost it as much as $500,000 in overtime and materials for snow removal. She also said that the county has distributed 3,000 tons of rock salt to municipalities.

"This kind of thing adds to what is already very significant pressure on our budgets," said Hackensack City Manager Stephen LoIacono. "These kinds of things are all back breakers when it comes to budgets. It’s the kind of situation where you don’t have a choice. There’s no question - you have to clear the roads."